The Harvard men’s basketball team looks to jump out to its first 3-0 start since 1999 as it takes on Sacred Heart at the Pitt Center in Fairfield, Conn. tonight.

The Crimson (2-0) has benefited from strong second half runs in its wins over Vermont and Holy Cross, trailing by as many as nine against the latter before rallying for a 15-point win.

The Pioneers (1-1), who were the preseason last pick in the Northeast Conference, shocked Albany after hanging tough with Rhode Island. Sacred Heart is led by senior forward Kibwe Trim, who has posted 20.5 points and five rebounds per game in the Pioneers’ first two contests. Trim has had to step up due to the absence of all-conference junior swingman Joey Henley, who has missed Sacred Heart’s first two contests with a leg injury suffered during football season.

Harvard entered the season with question marks surrounding its backcourt, but that issue seems to have cleared itself up a bit, as junior guard Jim Goffredo leads the team in scoring with 16 points per game and freshman point guard Drew Housman ranks third with 12.5 per contest.

Senior forward Matt Stehle has struggled out of the gate, but sits just half a point and half a rebound per game away from averaging a double-double. Junior center Brian Cusworth has put up 14.5 points per game, second-best on the team, and his 4.5 blocks per contest are currently fifth-best in the nation.

Harvard entered today at No. 15 in the RPI, though the rankings are very volatile this early in the season.